【鍵盤短評】
當家人進入監獄服刑時，對於家族其他人而言未嘗是一種煎熬，對於孩童來講，無疑是造成極大的衝擊，兒福聯盟曾針對2004年至2006年間服務過的高風險家庭進行調查，其中高風險成因有5％是因為父母入監服刑，有30％是父母進入勒戒所；又像是文章中指出對於孩童身心的影響，提高罹患心理疾病的可能之外，甚至入監服刑者進入到監獄之後，孩童原本可能有的成長支持網絡破碎了，於是小孩可能會由其他的同居人或陌生人照護，國家的社會福利系統並未有效介入和幫忙，造成近年來常有父母入監服刑，小孩遭人虐待致死的悲劇發生。法律懲罰的是小孩的父母，不應該變相牽連到無辜的小孩，可是國家未曾妥善地注意這一群看不見的被害人，往往要等到悲劇慘生時，只知道再用一個嚴刑來回復這樣的傷痛，卻沒有積極加強相應的社會福利措施。因此我們建議，當父母入監之時，內政部兒童局或縣市社政單位負責，而監獄收監之時也應該詢問受刑人，將這些事情轉言兒童局或縣市社政單位負責和協助。
【當爸媽在獄中】原文連結
作者：Chris Galloway, M.D.
出處：March 18 in the journal Pediatrics.
父母有一方正在服刑對整個家族而言可能是一件很辛苦的事情，但其所帶來的挑戰並不會隨著父母的出獄釋放而消失。對子女來說，那可能是一個長期的影響。
最近有研究報告指出，當有一方父母在監服刑，孩童有較高的機率發生身心健康的問題，並且罹患心理上疾病的機率高於生理上的病。
然而，即便是成人，他的父母親若在監獄服刑，也容易發生生理上的疾病，如高膽固醇、哮喘及偏頭痛。
Rosalyn D. Lee 博士正在對具有服刑父母的孩童進行一項長期觀察，主要是針對孩童的身心健康進行研究。Rosalyn D. Lee 博士是一位公共衛生博士，目前任職於疾病預防及管制局內的暴力防治單位。
該項數據是從美國青少年的建康調查取得，取自14800名7年級到12年級受調查的青少年，當他們進入青壯年時期後，再次調查並加以比較。也就是說，受調查者兩次被調查的時間大約是15歲及28歲。
青少年受訪者將被問到是否有任一親身父母曾經有入監服刑的經歷。之後在青壯年時期進行第二次調查時，將被詢問是否曾經被任何醫護人員告知具有健康上的異狀。該調查確認在16種的健康異狀中，有八種是特別與具有曾在監服刑父母經驗相關。
孩童具有曾父母在監服刑經驗者，較有可能患有下列疾病：抑鬱症，創傷後壓力綜合症，焦慮症，高膽固醇，哮喘，偏頭痛，愛滋病。並且通常身體狀況與一般的年輕人相較是中等或是較差的情形。但只有小部分的受調查者是愛滋患者，因此具有曾服刑之父母與罹患愛滋病間是否具正相關目前並不明朗。
值得注意的是，具有父母在監服刑經驗的青壯年，比一般人患有焦慮症的機率高達百分之五十，患有憂鬱症的機率高達百分之四十至四十六時(取決於是父親或母親入監服刑)。該項研究也有依照不同變項的考量作為統計的區分基礎，像是種族/民族，性別，受教育程度以及出生國籍。甚或是受調查者的家庭結構，父母的教育水平，父母是否有酗酒習慣以及父母是否受到公共救助。
母親曾在監服刑的孩童僅較容易患有憂鬱症。父親曾在監服刑的孩童成為青壯年後，患有身心疾病的機率是一般人的八倍，且患有心理疾病的機率亦略高於患有生理疾病的機率。
研究員表示，曾有其他研究指出，父母曾入監服刑經驗，對子女造成不良影響間的發展機制，應該是連結到安全感及穩定的教育關係的缺乏以及受到暴力侵害等因素。
惟有必要進行更多的研究，才能更完整的了解、解釋兩者之間的關係。
本文在3/18發表於兒科雜誌。本研究並沒有接受任何外部的贊助，但研究所使用的數據是由美國青少年進康調查所提供，作者並沒有任何的利害關係。
延伸閱讀：Parents in Prison and Their Minor Children◎美國司法統計局（BJS）
When Mom or Dad Is in Prison
Mental health problems linked to parents incarcination
(dailyRx News) Having a parent in prison can mean hardships for the entire family. But those challenges may not go away when the parent is released. There may be long-term consequences for the kids.
A recent study found that children are more likely to have physical and mental health problems as adults if their parents had been in prison.
The risk was higher for mental health issues than for physical health issues among children of incarcerated parents.
However, even physical conditions such as high cholesterol, asthma and migraines were more likely among adults whose parents had been in prison.
The study, led by Rosalyn D. Lee, PhD, MPH, of the Division of Violence Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, looked at the long-term physical and mental health of kids whose parents served time in prison.
The data included responses from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, which tracked 14,800 participants from grades 7 through 12 and then on into early adulthood.
In each of the two survey follow-ups among those whose data was used, participants were about 15 and 28 years old at the first and second survey times.
The teens and young adults were asked whether either biological parent had "ever spent time in jail or prison." Then, in the second survey, the participants were asked if a doctor, nurse or other healthcare provider had told them they had one of a number of different health conditions.
The researchers identified eight different health problems, out of a total of 16, which appeared significantly linked to a parent's incarceration.
Children who had had imprisoned parents were more likely to have depression, post-traumatic stress syndrome, anxiety, high cholesterol, asthma, migraines, HIV/AIDS and generally poor or fair health as young adults.
Only a small number of the overall sample had HIV/AIDS, so it's not clear how strong the association is for that condition.
Specifically, young adults whose parents had been incarcerated were about 50 percent more likely to have had anxiety and were about 40 to 60 percent more likely to be depressed (depending on which parent was in prison).
The researchers adjusted their findings to account for the race/ethnicity, gender, educational level and birth country of the participants. The calculations also accounted for whether the participants had been abused in any way, their family structure, their parents' levels of education, whether their parents were alcoholic and whether their parents received public assistance.
The researchers also looked at whether the links to health issues varied for mothers versus fathers who had been incarcerated. Kids whose mothers were in prison were only more likely to have depression.
Kids whose fathers were in prison were eight times more likely to have at least one of these mental or physical health problems as young adults. The risk for mental health issues was a little higher than for physical health issues among those whose fathers had been in prison.
The researchers said other studies suggest that "underlying mechanisms that link parental incarceration history to poor outcomes in offspring may include the lack of safe, stable, nurturing relationships and exposure to violence."
More study is necessary to understand the possible explanations for the link more thoroughly.
The study was published March 18 in the journal Pediatrics. The research did not receive external funding, but the researchers used a data set funded by the National Institutes for Health. The authors reported no conflicts of interest.
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